Mysterion
by Lingua Dii
Summary: Something is brewing in the small town of South Park, and Kenny's the only one who can stop it. Rated T for language.
1. Nightmare

After the final battle with Cthulhu, the boys of South Park could sleep soundly again. All except one: Kenny. Unlike the other boys, he never gave up his superhero persona. He knew it didn't just end with Cthulhu. A new crime wave had hit the small town of South Park, but nobody seemed to know who was behind it, and the thieves Kenny questioned didn't breathe a word about their plans. Some committed suicide before Kenny had a chance to grab them, even though they knew he wouldn't kill them, which just made Kenny more worried about what was brewing in South Park.  
Fighting crime all around town was exhausting and, after several years, little by little, it started messing up Kenny's regular life. At first, it was small things – he arrived late at school, sometimes he even fell asleep there – but it was only getting worse. He couldn't focus on anything, and he was acting strangely around his friends, almost as if he suspected them of something. Kyle noticed Kenny's change in behavior, but he kept it to himself, for the most part. Sometimes he let slip that he was worried about Kenny when he was around Stan, but Stan knew to keep his mouth shut.  
Kyle had been watching one of his best friends slowly withdrawing from the world, and he decided it was time to take action. He approached Kenny at his home, where he was greeted by Kevin, Kenny's brother.

"Hey, Kyle. I'm guessing you're here for my brother, right?"  
"Yeah."  
"He's upstairs, taking a nap, but he won't mind if you wake him."  
"Thanks, Kevin."

"_Just when are you guys gonna start dating anyway?_" Kevin thought.

Just about everyone in South Park knew Kenny and Kyle had a thing for each other. Two of the people who didn't know about their mutual crush, however, were Kenny and Kyle themselves. As far as either of they knew, the other wasn't interested in any relationship with another guy beyond simple friendship.  
Kyle headed upstairs into Kenny's bedroom, where he found the latter sleeping in his underwear. As usual, his room was a mess. There were clothes scattered all around the room, his computer was on and the window was open. There were also empty beer bottles under his bed, and a few full ones on his desk. However, Kyle simply ignored the mess and approached Kenny.

"_Still sleeping at 3 PM... Just what it is that you're up to at night, Kenny?_"

When Kyle got close enough, he realized that Kenny was shaking slightly. Kyle sat down next to where Kenny was sleeping and gently shook him, to wake him up. Kenny yawned loudly and opened his eyes shortly after. He was surprised and somewhat uncomfortable to see Kyle sitting in his bed, but he ignored his own feelings and decided to act as if it wasn't a problem.

"Hey, Kyle."  
"Hey."  
"What are you doing here?"  
"I... I came here to talk to you."  
"About?"  
"It's about you."  
"OK..."

Kyle sighed deeply, fully aware that Kenny wouldn't take his concern seriously. However, he could no longer stand by and watch.

"Kenny, I've watched you destroy your body with drugs, alcohol and smoking, but something else is going on now. You're acting strange around us, and you can barely stay awake. What's going on with you?"

Everyone could see that Kenny was having problems, but only Kyle had the courage to ask about it.  
Kenny smiled at his friend, amazed and glad that Kyle cared enough to actually address him about his problems. However, to protect Kyle (or maybe himself), Kenny couldn't reveal what he was up to at night.

"Kyle, I... I can't tell you."  
"Why not? What's so secret that you can't even tell me?"  
"If I could tell you, I would. I wish I could... Trust me on that."

Kyle's curiosity was piqued by Kenny's phrasing, but he decided to trust his friend's judgment. He sighed deeply again and smiled at Kenny, making the blond boy's heart skip a beat.

"Alright. I trust you, Kenny."  
"Thanks, Kyle."

Kenny smiled back at Kyle for a few seconds before Kevin knocked on the door to tell Kenny about lunch.

"Kenny! Lunch is ready!"  
"I'll be right there!"

Kenny turned to Kyle again, with his smile now gone, and stated the obvious.

"I gotta go now." Kenny said.  
"Yeah, I got that. I'll see you later."

Kyle left Kenny's home and headed into his own, where he started playing with his computer, still thinking about Kenny.

* * *

Later that night, after everyone had gone to sleep, Kenny put on the Mysterion outfit he had made for himself, in preparation for another night of protecting the citizens of South Park. He climbed out through his bedroom window, so as not to wake anyone in his home, and headed into town. He quickly found a tall, suspicious-looking man and decided to follow him.  
With each step, the strange man looked around him, as if to see if he was being followed. However, Kenny's dark outfit let him blend in with the night and made him practically invisible to the man.

* * *

After several minutes of walking around town in circles, the man finally seemed to be heading toward something important. Kenny's heart started pounding in his chest as they approached the stranger's actual destination.

"_Finally! I thought he was just going to walk around town all night._"

The tall stranger headed toward an abandoned building near the edge of town, where he knocked on the door three times, then opened it. He was greeted by a second stranger, that Kenny couldn't see properly, and started talking about something Kenny couldn't make out.

"_I have to get closer to them._"

Kenny approached the men as quickly and quietly as possible, until, finally he could understand their conversation. However, he still couldn't make out the second stranger's face.

"-that's everything, sir. We're doing our best to find it."  
"Work harder. I want it found this week."  
"Yes, sir."

The tall stranger exited the room, but the other one went deeper into the abandoned building, until Kenny could no longer see him.

"_I wonder what 'it' is... I'd better ask my tall friend there._"

* * *

Kenny waited for the tall man to get away from the abandoned building, and, finally, approached him. The man heard Kenny's soft footsteps and turned around just in time to receive a punch in the gut.

"Whoa there, friend!" Kenny said in his Mysterion voice. "We need to talk."  
"Who the hell are you? What do you want?" asked the man, clearly in pain.  
"My name is Mysterion."  
"M-Mysterion?"  
"Yeah. I want to know what your friend over in the abandoned building is looking for."  
"I can't!"  
"Oh yes you can. Tell me now, and I promise I won't hurt you anymore."

Kenny smiled, completely certain that the man would give in. However, much to Kenny's surprise, the man pulled out a knife and stabbed him in the gut. Kenny reached for the knife, to get it out, but the man beat him to it. He pulled it out roughly and stabbed Kenny several more times, before finally stopping.

"_Well, fuck. I sure underestimated him._" Kenny thought. "_Good thing I'm immortal._"

Kenny fell onto the ground almost immediately. Gathering all the strength he had left he looked at the man, who looked scared beyond belief. He looked back at Kenny and ran away. Kenny died shortly afterward, and his body vanished, along with the man's memories of killing him.

"_Where did he go? I'd better report this to the boss._"

The man headed backwards to the empty building as quickly as he could. Once there, he knocked on the door three times again before opening it. His leader was still there, much to his relief.

"_Good. The boss is still here._"

"Boss, I just got jumped by some guy wearing a cape."  
"Did you kill him?"  
"I wanted to, but he just... vanished."

"_Could it be?_"

"Sir, what's going on?"  
"What was his name?"  
"He called himself... Mysterion."

"_Kenny..._"

"Sir?"  
"You did well coming to me, Nate. However..."

Nate's leader quickly turned around and shot him in the stomach.

"I'm afraid you've been compromised. I can't have that sort of weakness in my team."  
"Sir..."

Nate collapsed and died shortly after. Nate's killer picked up Nate's knife and called other people who were in the building to take away his body, and so they did.

"_Kenny... Just what are you up to?_"

* * *

Kenny opened his eyes and found himself in the middle of South Park. Grey particles were raining down from above. At first, Kenny thought it was snow, but then he realized it was ash. Everywhere he looked he saw only destruction, buildings burning and people turned to ash. It looked like the town had suffered a nuclear strike.

"_What the fuck is going on here?_"

Kenny walked for miles, not seeing another soul. Eventually he arrived at his own house, which he found completely destroyed. Most of the roof had collapsed onto the ground, and the entire first floor had been decimated. The ground floor, on the other hand, still had a few walls up. There was no sight of his siblings or his parents. Suddenly, he heard a strange sound coming from underneath the rubble; almost like a muffled scream.

"Hello? Who's there?"

The sound got louder, prompting Kenny to run toward it and start clearing away the rubble. Once he did, he found Kyle lying there. He put his hand under Kyle's head and held it up, before gently shaking him. Kyle opened his eyes shortly afterward.

"Kyle! What happened?"  
"Y-You're alive? I'm so happy."  
"Kyle... What happened here?"  
"Cthulhu was released... He leveled the town within minutes. Almost everyone died. I came here to find you, but... your house fell on me. I think I broke my legs..."  
"It's OK, Kyle. I'm going to get you some help."  
"I... I-I don't think I'm gonna make it."

Kenny looked at Kyle again. He instinctively raised Kyle's shirt and saw a massive bruise across his stomach. Tears started forming in Kenny's eyes as the fact that Kyle was going to die registered in his brain.

"Don't say that! I... I'm gonna save you!"  
"I'm... I'm sorry..."

Kyle closed his eyes and went limp, sending Kenny into a frenzy of shaking him and yelling his name.

"Kyle! Please, wake up... Wake up..."

Kenny's tears dropped from his eyes and fell on Kyle, soaking his clothes. Suddenly, everything around Kenny started to fade away, until only he and Kyle were left. Soon afterward, Kyle vanished too, leaving Kenny floating in emptiness.

"_What the fuck is going on here?_"

Two big red eyes opened from the darkness, and a figure began to form. It had dragon-like wings, glossy green skin and tentacles on its face. Kenny recognized it immediately as Cthulhu.

"What are you doing here?!"

Cthulhu opened its huge mouth and spoke in a deep, eerie voice.

"Puny human! You cannot stop what is to come. You will die, just like everyone else you've ever loved!"

"_Kyle..._"

Cthulhu opened its mouth again, this time swallowing Kenny whole. Kenny screamed in fear and pain, and woke up on his bed, covered in sweat. He gasped and breathed rapidly for several minutes, before finally calming down.

"_Another nightmare... This time it was worse._"

Kenny had been having nightmares about Cthulhu ever since Bradley defeated him. Every time, they became more and more vivid, with more information being revealed. Kyle's death had just been the latest in a long list of terrible events that would come to pass if Cthulhu were released.

"_I can't let that happen. I have to stop Cthulhu. If Kyle died, I... I don't know what I'd do._"

"Kenny! It's time for school!"  
"Coming, mom!"

"_Well, time to learn crap I'll never use later in life. But first, a shower. I stink._"

Kenny got up from his bed and rushed into the bathroom to shower. Once he was done, he ate his breakfast before packing his bag and leaving for school.

* * *

Kenny arrived at the same time as Kyle and Stan, but Cartman was nowhere in sight.

"Hey, guys!"  
"Hey! Look who's early for school!" said Stan.  
"Yeah... I couldn't sleep."  
"Why not?" Kyle asked, concerned for Kenny.  
"Just a nightmare... It's nothing."

"_And here I thought you stayed out all night... I guess I was wrong._" Kyle thought.

The bell rang, announcing the start of the school day, and so the boys headed toward the large building. Cartman arrived shortly afterward, clearly upset about something.

"Hey, Cartman. What's got you down?"  
"A friend of mine died yesterday..."  
"Wow, that sucks." Stan replied.

"_I used to die almost every day, and you never seemed to pay attention to it..._" Kenny thought.

"Well, that's life."

Cartman led the boys into the school building. Kyle, Kenny and Stan thought Cartman's reaction to a friend dying was strange, but they dismissed it.

"_Cartman has always been somewhat... detached from everyone._" Kyle thought. "_It's no wonder he'd say what he did._"

"Come on, let's get to class."  
"Lead the way."

* * *

I hope you liked this chapter.  
As some of you probably know/remember, I mentioned a new series of stories. Well, I've already finished the first two chapters of the first story (I was inspired), but I can't decide on a name for the first one; that's why I haven't uploaded either of them yet. As soon as one of my betas gets back to me with a name, I will upload both chapters at the same time.  
You probably also noticed that this chapter took a long time to upload. It was another naming issue, added to the fact that I didn't like the chapter at first. However, after fully reading it a second time (the first time being when I wrote it), I liked it. On a related note, the second chapter has already been written, but, like this one, I can't decide on what to name it. If you think you can help, send me a PM and I'll send you the chapter.


	2. Trust Me

Time passed, with Kenny acting suspicious around his friends, as usual. Kyle was trying to ignore it, focusing on what Kenny had told him the previous day, but he couldn't. After several more minutes of watching Kenny act strangely, Kyle made up his mind. He had to talk to someone about it; namely Stan. Kyle approached Stan during recess, leaving Kenny alone with Cartman.

"Listen, you must've noticed Kenny's acting strange." Kyle said. "I wanted to talk to you about that."

"_You want to talk about Kenny again?_" Stan thought. "_You know, being your friend and having to listen to you complain, rather than act on your feelings, is hard._"

"Go ahead."  
"Not here." Kyle replied. "I have to tell you something personal, and I don't want everyone to hear it."  
"OK..."

"_You could've just said that from the start._" Stan thought.

* * *

Meanwhile, Kenny approached Cartman about the friend he had recently lost, to gather information about his classmate.

"So, what happened to your friend?"  
"He was shot."  
"Seriously?"  
"Yeah."  
"Was he mugged or something?"  
"Nah, he... Well, he-"  
"Hey, guys!" Kyle yelled as he approached his friends. "We're back."

"_Just in time._" Cartman thought. "_You finally have some use, Kyle._"

* * *

Once their classes were over, Kenny, Kyle, Stan and Cartman headed back home. Kenny and Cartman each headed to their own homes, while Kyle and Stan went to Kyle's house together. On the way there, Kenny asked Cartman to tell him the story behind his friend's passing.

"So how did your friend die?"  
"He... Look, it's personal, alright?! I shouldn't have even told you anything about it in the first place."  
"Jeez, Cartman, relax. I was just curious."  
"Well, you know what they say: curiosity killed the cat. Be careful before it kills **you**."  
"...Is that supposed to be a threat, **Eric**?"  
"It's a warning, **Kenneth**. Be careful what you wish for. You might just get it."

The boys arrived at Cartman's house, where he quickly made his way inside. Kenny felt that he was on the verge of something big, but he couldn't put the pieces together.

"_I'll find out what you're hiding, Cartman, whatever it takes._" Kenny thought.

* * *

Meanwhile, as Kenny continued his way home, Kyle and Stan entered the former's room.

"So, what did you want to tell me?" Stan asked as Kyle sat down on his bed.  
"Well... It's about Kenny."  
"Yeah, you've told me that already..."  
"I-I... I kinda... I kinda like him."  
"Yes... Not hearing anything I don't already know."  
"You knew?" Kyle asked wide-eyed.  
"Kyle, **everyone** knows." Stan replied as he shrugged. "Well, almost everyone." he added. "I'm guessing Kenny doesn't know, since you two are not together yet."  
"Do you think he likes me?" Kyle asked as he stared at the ground and blushed.  
"I think so, but I'm not sure. If I were you, I'd tell him how you feel. It might all work out for the best."  
"I can't do that... What if he doesn't like me? What if he thinks worse of me for liking him?"

Stan sat down next to Kyle and sighed deeply.

"If he did, would you really still like him? I know I wouldn't. As friends, I mean."  
"No..."  
"Besides, that doesn't sound like Kenny at all. He might not be the smartest guy around, but he's got a good heart."  
"I guess..."  
"Although, lately, he's been... I dunno. It's like he doesn't trust us."  
"I talked to him about that... He said to trust **him**."  
"Trust him? What the hell does that mean?"  
"I don't know... I just hope he's alright."

* * *

Later that night, Kenny donned his Mysterion outfit and exited his bedroom through his window for his nightly patrol of the town. After several hours of nothing, he found Cartman walking about.

"_I'd better follow him._" Kenny thought.

Kenny followed Cartman straight to the building he had followed the tall man to. It was all starting to make sense.

"_Cartman must've been the other guy I couldn't see. If that's true, then... it is as I feared. My own friends are turning against me... Some of them, anyway. I know Kyle would never work with Cartman, but maybe Stan is... I can't trust any of them. Anything I tell Kyle will end up known by Stan too... If only he knew I've been trying to keep him safe. If only he knew... how much I love him._"

Kenny wiped away a tear forming in the corner of his left eye, pushed all thoughts of Kyle out of his mind, and instead focused on the problem at hand.

"_How the fuck am I gonna get in there without being noticed?_"

Kenny scouted the outside of the building and realized that his problem lain not in how he would get inside the building, since there were no guards that he could see, but rather how he would get around inside the building once he actually entered it.

"_It's not like they have maps of buildings... Hm..._" Kenny thought.

After a few seconds of pondering, Kenny decided to go ahead and enter the building anyway, even though he lacked a plan.

"_Worst thing that could happen is that I get killed. No biggie._"

Kenny sneaked through the front door. He could hear faint voices coming from somewhere in the building, so he decided to head toward them. He recognized Cartman's voice, but no others. They were getting louder, a clear indication that Kenny was getting closer to them.

"_In here._"

Kenny reached a large arc-shaped door with small octopi-like heads for knobs, held his breath and opened it slightly; just enough to see and hear, but not enough to be seen. The first thing he noticed was the long table in the middle of the room. From what Kenny could tell, it seemed to go on all the way to the other side of the room. There were people sitting all round the table, wearing long red robes with hoods on them, embroidered with incomprehensible words. Kenny briefly wondered how big the room was, until a distorted voice, coming from the opposite end of the room, made itself heard.

"My followers, I bring you great news." the voice said. "What we have been searching for for so long has finally been found."

The room roared in cheers at the voice's statement. After several seconds of cheering, the voice cleared its throat, causing the cheers to end, and rephrased its statement.

"Or rather, we've found where it will be. Soon, I will be reborn, and you will be infinitely rewarded."

Again, the room cheered. This time the voice let them cheer as long as they wanted. After almost a full minute of cheers, everyone got up at roughly the same time and yelled a phrase Kenny couldn't understand.

"Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn!" the people in the room yelled in unison.

Kenny realized they were about to leave, so he took refuge in the closest room he could find, a storage closet, while simultaneously peeking through the keyhole to see if the people in the other room were coming his way.

"_This is way too cramped. I just hope they pass by without noticing me._"

Kenny's unspoken prayers were answered, and everyone walked by him without raising any alarms. The last person to leave the room was someone Kenny immediately recognized: Cartman. He had bloodshot eyes and was gently massaging his own head, clearly in pain. Judging from the time it had taken him to exit the room, Kenny concluded that he was the mysterious voice he had heard.

"_I knew it! I fucking knew it! Just what is Cartman up to? And how did he change his voice? Just what the hell is going on here?_"

In the midst of wondering what was going on, Kenny knocked over a small cup of coffee that had been stashed in the closet he was hiding in.

"Huh?" Cartman said.

Cartman suddenly stopped on his way out of the building and turned to where Kenny was hiding. He reached for the knob, but was stopped by one of his followers.

"Sir! We need to leave."  
"Right..."

"_Think, Kenny, think! Where can I hide? I know!_"

Cartman opened the storage closet's door anyway, but found nothing except a cup and some coffee spilled on the floor.

"_I'm glad he didn't look up here!_" Kenny thought.

Kenny had hid in the sub-ceiling, where Cartman couldn't reach him. He dropped back down onto the ground as soon as he couldn't hear any more footsteps.

"_Thank you, 'Burn Notice'._" Kenny thought.

* * *

Several minutes later, Kenny found himself alone in the large building. His first instinct was to exit through the front door, but he found it locked. Instead, Kenny decided to leave through a window that led to a small garden by the side of the building. It provided him with some cover, which he gladly took, before finally leaving the area.

* * *

On his way home, Kenny came across Kyle, who was also heading toward Kenny's home. Kenny ran as quickly as he could, to beat Kyle there and keep his secret safe, until he heard screams coming from an alley. He rushed toward the alley, completely ignoring Kyle, and defended the person being attacked. Kenny punched the attacker in the face, breaking his nose instantly, and he fled. The victim thanked Kenny with watery eyes, and then something Kenny didn't expect happened.

"So this is what you've been doing at night, Kenny?"

Kenny froze from hearing Kyle's voice. The woman he had just helped left them alone, as she could see they needed to talk. Once she was out of hearing range, Kenny replied to Kyle in his regular voice. There was no point in hiding his identity.

"Kyle, I-"  
"Don't say anything. Do you know how worried I've been? I was going to... I mean, I wanted to..."  
"...To what?"

"_I can't tell him the truth. He'd find out that I like him._" Kyle thought. "_Besides, it would sound creepy. Gotta make up a convincing lie._"

"I was going to your house to... talk to you. I wanted to know what you were doing. Now I do."  
"And you came this late?"

"_Smooth as ever._" Kyle thought. "_Now I have to make up an excuse. Something less stupid than that lie I told him just now._"

"I... I wanted to find out if you really were sneaking out at night."  
"OK... but that still doesn't explain-"  
"Look, Kenny, the important thing is that I'm here. I caught you. Now, do you wanna talk about it, or should I go tell your mom what you've been doing?"  
"Like she'd care..."  
"You know what I mean."

"_Not really._" Kenny thought. "_It's not like anyone cares about me. Not even my parents, my brother and sister... Nobody cares._"

"OK, Kyle... Talk."  
"Well..."

Kyle rambled on for several minutes, starting with the fact that he didn't want Kenny to be risking his life for others, moving on to the fact that Kenny was way too young to be fighting crime, finishing it off with a teary-eyed repetition of his first point. All this made Kenny feel even worse than he already did, but he held back his tears, for both his and Kyle' sake. Once Kyle got a hold of his emotions as well and stopped sobbing so loudly, Kenny finally made his opinion heard.

"Kyle, I need you to trust me. I know what I'm doing. I need to do this."  
"Why you? Why not call the police, or let someone else-"  
"The police isn't doing shit! You know it, I know it, **everyone fucking knows it**! Our fellow residents are too scared to even leave their own fucking homes!"

Kenny took a deep breath, to calm himself down, before finishing his opinion.

"Nobody is going to help them. Nobody **can** help them. Except me."  
"You're not Superman, Kenny. What you're doing is messing you up in ways you probably haven't even thought of. You can't... You can't keep doing this. If you died, I..."

Kyle felt his eyes tearing up again, so he turned his back to Kenny, so as not to alert the blond boy to his true feelings. Kenny approached him, took a deep breath, taking in the sweet smell of Kyle's curly red hair, and smiled.

"_You smell so good..._"

"I won't die, Kyle. I promise."  
"How can you promise that?"  
"Just trust me, Kyle... Please."

"_I need you._" Kenny thought. "_Without you... I have nothing._"

Kyle wiped away his tears and turned to Kenny. He looked into the blond boy's bright blue eyes and smiled.

"_You've always had the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen..._" Kyle thought.

"OK. I trust you, Kenny."  
"Thank you, Kyle."

The boys stood in front of each other for what seemed like forever, enjoying their proximity, until Kenny broke the silence with an offer.

"Look, Kyle, it's getting late... I'll walk you back home, alright?"  
"Thanks, Kenny."

* * *

Kenny and Kyle walked all the way to the latter's house without saying a word. When they arrived, Kyle messed around with his keys, trying to find the right one to open the door, and ended up dropping the whole thing. Kenny reached for it at the same time as Kyle, and the boys ended up bumping their hands together.

"S-Sorry." Kenny said.  
"I-It's OK. Don't worry about it."

Kenny had gotten too close to Kyle for comfort. Kyle stared at the ground beneath his feet, unsure of what to do in that situation. Suddenly, Kenny placed his hand on Kyle's face and gently stroked his cheek. In response, Kyle lifted his head and stared into Kenny's eyes.

"Kenny, I..."

Kyle's thoughts and words were soon drowned out by Kenny smashing his lips against Kyle's. Kyle closed his eyes and instinctively kissed back, which only lasted for a few seconds, as Kenny broke the kiss.

"Kenny..."

Instead of addressing Kyle any further, Kenny ran away, leaving Kyle alone to wonder.


	3. Broken Promises

Kyle woke up to the sound of his alarm, as usual. He reached for it and gently pushed the snooze button, giving him an additional five minutes to mentally prepare for the journey ahead. He had spent all night awake, wondering what that kiss meant. It was the single most exciting moment of his life, yet it was so confusing that, ultimately, it became meaningless, as if it hadn't even occurred. For the first time in his life, Kyle was actually looking forward to school. Or, more precisely, he was looking forward to seeing Kenny again.

"_Kenny... Why did you run like that? Was it something I did? Something I said? What even happened? Why did you do it?_"

Kyle's thoughts were interrupted by his alarm clock, ringing again. This time, he turned it off completely and finally got up.

"_I guess I'll find out today... One way or another._"

Kyle rushed to the bathroom to shower and shave, but he stopped once he realized the door had been locked from the inside. Instead, he knocked on the door three times and waited for someone to answer.

"_Are my parents in there? They usually get up even before I do._"

"Just give me five more minutes, bro!" Ike said.

"_Fucking Ike! What's he doing up so early anyway? His classes aren't for another two hours! Mine, on the other hand..._"

Kyle stood outside the bathroom door for some time before losing his patience.

"Ike! Hurry up!"  
"Kyle! Don't yell at your baby brother!"  
"Sorry, mom!"

Inside the bathroom, Ike smiled and giggled.

"_Mom's way too hard on him..._" Ike thought.

* * *

After he was done showering, Kyle began the boring task of shaving.

"_I fucking hate shaving..._" Kyle thought. "_If only I was still younger... then I wouldn't have to shave every three or so days. To think that I wanted to grow up... Fucking moron I was. I'm sure Ike thinks he wants to grow up too. If only he knew..._"

Kyle's thoughts soon turned to Kenny again. He imagined the moment when Kenny kissed him, and when he kissed back. It had all happened so fast, he hardly had time to enjoy it. However, each moment seemed to stand apart from the others, as if it had happened several times over.

"_C'mon, Kyle, get a hold of yourself... It was just a kiss. Kisses happen... Even if it was the single, best, most magical moment in all of my-_"

"Kyle! Breakfast!"  
"Coming, mom!"

Kyle had been so distracted by his thoughts that he didn't even notice the time passing. By the time his mother yelled at him about breakfast, he had already finished shaving.

"_Wow. I guess it's true. Time does fly when you're having fun._"

* * *

When Kyle arrived at school, classes had already begun. He saw Stan and Cartman heading toward the main building, but no sign of Kenny.

"_He's probably just late. Kenny's always late..._"

In the back of his mind, Kyle was starting to wonder whether Kenny would even show up at all. He didn't know what was on the blond boy's mind, or his own. All he knew was that he wanted to be reunited with Kenny, to finally get some answers.  
Stan turned around just in time to see Kyle running toward him and Cartman.

"Hey, guys!" Kyle yelled as he approached his friends. "Sorry I'm late."  
"Where've you been?" Stan asked. "We've been waiting out here for, like, half an hour!"  
"Sorry..."  
"It's fine... Just don't do it again."

* * *

Kyle's first class ended, but Kenny hadn't shown up yet. Kyle was starting to get nervous and worried.

"_Where the fuck is he? God... What if he's dead?_"

Kyle looked around frantically, searching for Kenny. Stan and Cartman noticed he was acting strangely, but only the former decided to do something about it. He approached Kyle slowly, leaving Cartman behind.

"Hey, Kyle. What's up?"  
"Huh? Oh, it's just you, Stan..."  
"Uh... Yeah. Who were you expecting?"  
"I... I was just wondering where Kenny is."  
"I'm sure he's at home, as usual."  
"He should've been here by now..."  
"Kyle, I'm sure he's fine."  
"Maybe I should run over there to check."  
"Kyle! Dude! Relax!"  
"Don't fucking yell at me!"

The boys' yelling drawn unwanted attention to them. Everyone around them for several feet stared at them for several seconds, before returning to their own business.

"...Just leave me alone." Kyle said.  
"I-I'm sorry. I just want to help you. I'm your friend, Kyle. I... I didn't mean to yell at you."  
"I know, Stan... Look, I swear I'll tell you what's going on later, but, right now, I just need to be alone."  
"...I understand. I'll leave you to your thoughts."

Stan returned to his place beside Cartman, and Kyle resumed his search for Kenny. He even prepared himself mentally to run over to Kenny's home and back, but he was interrupted by the bell, clearing his mind of those thoughts.

"_I can't go over there now... I'd be late to class, and my mom would kill me if she found out. I'll go there once school is over._"

* * *

When Kenny woke up, it was well past noon, yet he had no thoughts of going to school. In fact, he wanted to avoid it for as long as possible.

"_I can't go back._" Kenny thought. "_If Kyle sees me again... I can't believe I kissed him. What was I thinking?_"

Kenny slowly rose from his bed, completely focused on avoiding Kyle. He was so focused that he didn't notice a stray beer bottle on the ground and slipped. He fell on the ground, nearly hitting his head against his bed.

"_Fucking messy room... I should clean this up. That should get my mind off of... Kyle... But what if he shows up here again? Decisions, decisions..._"

* * *

After several minutes of considering his options, Kenny decided to leave his home to roam his small town. Before leaving, Kenny emptied his backpack of all the school stuff and placed his Mysterion outfit in it.

"_I might need it later on. Who knows if I'll run into Cartman again._"

Kenny exited his home unnoticed by his mother, who was asleep in her bedroom, and was faced with a pressing question.

"_Now what? Where should I go? Hm..._"

Kenny stared off in the direction of the school.

"_Well, **obviously**, I can't go to school. Kyle's there._"

Kenny faced some more directions, including Tweek's parents' coffee shop, Stark's pond and the hospital. Eventually, he decided to go to the coffee shop.

"_I hate coffee, and Kyle knows it. He'd never look for me there._"

Kenny picked up his backpack, put it on, and made his way to the coffee shop.

* * *

Once Kenny arrived at the coffee shop, he looked around. The coffee shop was a small one-story square building with several round tables spread across its floor. There were also square tables near the walls, specifically made for two people to have some privacy. The balcony sat near the wall opposite of the entrance, with barely enough space to fit an adult. Kenny inhaled deeply and furrowed his eyebrows at the smell of coffee.

"_Disgusting smell._" Kenny thought. "_Unfortunately, it's the last place Kyle will look for me... If he **is** looking for me in the first place._"

Kenny entered through the revolving door and was greeted by Tweek's father.

"Well, look who it is! Hello, Kenny!"  
"Hey, Mr. Tweak."  
"Wait, shouldn't you be at school?"  
"I... Um..."

"_I didn't think this all the way through._" Kenny thought.

"Well..."  
"It's OK, Kenny. I understand. Sometimes I didn't feel like going to school either, but you can't just skip school every time that happens."  
"Look, Mr. Tweak-"  
"Call me Richard."  
"Richard... I'm not skipping school because I didn't feel like going."  
"Why did you do it then?"  
"It's complicated... You wouldn't understand."  
"If you say so, Kenny..." Richard sighed. "Would you like some coffee?"  
"No, thank you. I'll just have some water, if that's OK."  
"Sure, Kenny."

Tweek's father called one of waiters for him and told him to get Kenny a bottle of water, while simultaneously pointing Kenny toward an empty seat. Kenny gladly took his seat and waited for his water to arrive. His mind returned to the thought he had had just before he entered the small coffee shop.

"_What if Kyle doesn't want to see me again? I shouldn't have kissed him... Fucking stupid, as always._"

"Here's your water."  
"Thanks."

Kenny opened the cool bottle and slowly poured it into the small glass. He drank it as slowly as he could, to enjoy the taste, as well as the temperature. Once he finished, he sighed deeply.

"_Well, that was fun... Now back to figuring out what to do about Kyle. I can't avoid him forever. Eventually someone is gonna call my mom. What to do?..._"

Kenny poured some more water and drank it.

"_I wish this had alcohol in it. Maybe then I'd be able to make up some sort of plan... Or at the very least forget that I **fucking kissed him**! Fuck! I'm such a moron!_"

Kenny grabbed the now-empty glass and started squeezing it gently. In his current state of self-resentment, he wanted to smash it into a million pieces. However, he held back his anger and placed it gently on the table before paying for his water and leaving.

"_This isn't working. I something to drink._" Kenny thought as he stared at the water bottle in his hand. "_Something better than water and the beer I have at home._"

* * *

Kenny arrived at the local bar a few minutes after leaving the coffee shop. He sat down at his usual seat and ordered some whiskey. Once it arrived, he drank it as quickly as he could, taking no time to enjoy it. All he wanted was to get drunk, to forget about his problems. He ordered a second round, then a third and a fourth. After the fourth, Kenny was starting to feel hazy. It was getting harder to think, which put a smile on his face.

"_Perfect. Just what I wanted._"

Kenny tried getting up from his seat, but instead fell down on the ground, earning some laughs from everyone around him. One of the bartenders helped him up, and, in doing so, recognized him.

"You're Kenny, right?"

Kenny nodded in response.

"I didn't think any amount of alcohol could knock **you** down."  
"I... I'm having some... personal issues."  
"I'll bet... Look, I have to get back to work. Is there someone you want me to call? Someone to pick you up?"

"_Kyle._" Kenny thought.

"Nope. I'm fine." Kenny lied.  
"If you say so... Tell you what, you can stay here until you can walk on your own, alright?"  
"Thanks, Tim."  
"Um... It's Tom."  
"O-Oh... S-Sorry."  
"It's OK..." Tom sighed. "I'm used to it."

"_Poor guy._" Kenny thought as Tom walked away.

* * *

Kenny stayed at the bar for some time. He decided to sit down at a table, which was somewhat more comfortable than sitting at the balcony. Once he started feeling somewhat clearer, Kenny ordered several more rounds, until his mind became fuzzy again. He did this for several hours, completely losing track of time.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the school, Kyle exited the main building and ran straight home, completely ignoring Stan and Cartman, the former of whom called out to him as he ran away. The only thing on Kyle's mind was to get to Kenny as soon as possible, to find out what was on his mind.

"_I gotta know... Otherwise I'll be spending the rest of my life wondering what could have been._"

* * *

Once Kyle arrived at Kenny's, he knocked on the door, shaking like a leaf. His heart felt like it was about to burst from his chest. He could feel the blood rushing to his face and he could hear his pulse racing in his ears. All these sensations stopped, however, once the door was finally opened, by Kevin, rather than Kenny.

"Hey, Kyle."  
"Oh... Hey, Kevin."  
"My brother's not here right now. He went out a while ago."  
"Do you know where he went?"  
"I can guess... But I don't know if he'd want me to tell you."  
"Tell me, please. I really need to talk to him."

Kevin didn't want to tell Kyle where his brother was, but one look at Kyle's sad emerald-green eyes and his resolve was demolished.

"...He's at the bar."  
"Where's that?"

"_I thought you'd know..._" Kevin thought.

"Head **that** way for about ten blocks. It should be fairly obvious once you get there."

"_Great._" Kyle thought. "_Now I have to head back the way I came, and then some._"

"Thanks, Kevin."

Kyle shook hands with Kevin before turning around and leaving.

* * *

On his way to the bar, Kyle's heart began to race again. It pounded against his chest in such a manner that made him somewhat worried that he was having a heart attack.

"_Fucking Kenny... If only he knew what he does to me._"

* * *

Kyle arrived at the bar several minutes after leaving Kenny's home. He found Kenny drinking his umpteenth round of whiskey, completely and utterly drunk. Kyle approached the large bar and entered it as quickly as he could. The smell of alcohol was in the air, making Kyle wince in disgust.

"_I don't get why Kenny drinks. Alcohol smells like shit._"

Kyle approached Kenny as he downed yet another round. Kenny looked at him and felt a cold shiver running down his spine.

"_I should've stayed at the coffee shop._" Kenny thought.

"Kyle!? What are you doing here?"  
"I... I came to talk to you."  
"OK... About what?"

"_You know damn well what._" Kyle thought.

"It's... private."  
"Oh..." Kenny replied. "**That**."  
"Yeah. So... can we go somewhere private?"

Kenny didn't want to go with Kyle. He knew the conversation would likely end with him saying something stupid and hurting Kyle. Hurting him was the last thing Kenny wanted.  
Kyle noticed his friend was unwilling to go with him, yet he decided to give it another shot. He looked straight into Kenny's bright blue eyes and spoke as softly as he could.

"Please? For me."

Kenny's heart melted from Kyle's request. He nodded in agreement, payed for his drinks and left with Kyle.

* * *

Kyle led Kenny to his house, and up into his room. Kyle's family members were absent, much to both boys' relief. Once they finally went inside Kyle's room, they froze. Kyle, because he didn't know what to say, and Kenny, because he was afraid of saying the wrong thing. Eventually, Kyle decided to talk about something unrelated to his real reason for dragging Kenny to his house.

"Kenny, I... I wanted to talk to you about giving up crime fighting."  
"Kyle..." Kenny sighed.  
"Please, just listen. I know you told me to trust you, but I can't. I'm sorry. You want to help people, but you can't keep doing this. I've never seen you so messed up, even when you were high on several different drugs at the same time. I'm surprised you're not dead already."  
"I told you, I'm not gonna die."  
"How can you even say that? You're out there, every night, fighting criminals. Some day your luck's gonna run out."

"_It already has, several times. I've died more often than you would believe._"

"Kenny?"  
"Kyle, I... I can't tell you why I'm sure I won't die. Even if I did, you wouldn't believe me."  
"What the fuck is **that** supposed to mean?"  
"It's exactly what it sounds like. You won't believe me if I tell you."  
"...Just tell me what's going on with you."

Kenny's patience had run out. Even though he was with Kyle, the alcohol had lowered his inhibitions to the point when he simply couldn't handle Kyle's questioning.

"Fine. You want to know the truth? Here it is. Remember when Bradley defeated Cthulhu? I knew it didn't just end with him. I knew what was going on in our town. Criminals were hanging around like... I can't even come up with a proper analogy. The point is, they were here. And they weren't going away. I knew-"  
"And how, pray tell, did you 'know' all this?" Kyle asked skeptically.  
"I... I've been having nightmares about Cthulhu ever since the thing with Bradley. They've only been getting worse, and in my last one..."  
"...What?"

Kenny wiped away the tears forming in his eyes and resumed his story.

"The town looked like it got hit by a nuke. Everything had burned down, and you... you died in my arms. You had come to my house to find me, and... it fell on you."  
"Is that why you've been so focused on stopping crime in our town?"  
"Partly. I only had that dream a couple of days ago."  
"And have the others come true?"

Kenny began to remember his previous nightmares. One in particular stood out among the rest: the one where he had been betrayed by his friends. Kenny briefly wondered if he could trust Kyle. After mulling it over for a while, he answered Kyle's question with a stern look on his face.

"Yes. Every one of them."  
"What else?"  
"Well, I found these guys – a cult, I guess you'd call it – and they seem to have found something big. Something related to Cthulhu. I... spied on one of their meetings, and they almost found me hiding in a storage closet."  
"Did you see who their leader was?"  
"Yes..."  
"Who was it?"  
"...It was Cartman."  
"What?!"  
"It was Cartman. I saw him leave the room where they had their little meeting, with bloodshot eyes and a migraine. Something's going on in there, and Cartman is behind it."  
"...What are you planning to do?"  
"What else? Stop him."  
"You mean kill him?"  
"That's the last thing on my mind."  
"But it **is** on your mind."  
"...I'm not gonna lie to you, Kyle. After everything Cartman's done over the years? I think he deserves to die a hundred times over."

Kyle stared in bemusement at Kenny, until he finished his point.

"**But**... I'm not gonna be the one to do it. I can't."  
"...Why don't you just stop what you're doing, before you hurt yourself or hurt others?"  
"Kyle, I can't just-"  
"Please, Kenny. **Please** don't do this. I don't want you to hurt Cartman."  
"How can you say that, after everything he's done to you?"  
"I know... I should hate him. Maybe I do... but I don't want to see him end up dead."  
"I told you, I'm not going to kill him."  
"You say that now, but what if it doesn't end like that? What if you're put in a position where you have to defend yourself from him?"  
"If that happens, I'll-"  
"Or worse, what if he doesn't share your feelings about killing someone and kills **you**?"  
"Kyle, I'm not gonna die."  
"Don't you fucking say that! I'm sick and tired of you saying that! You're not invincible, Kenny!"

"_Yes I am._" Kenny thought.

"Kyle, just-"  
"And don't give me that 'trust me' BS you told me yesterday. I can't trust you if you won't tell me the truth!"

Kenny finally snapped. Kyle's thoughtless remarks had gotten to him. He looked at Kyle with anger in his eyes and yelled at him.

"Why do you care so much, anyway? Why can't you just **leave me the fuck alone**?"  
"Because!" Kyle yelled.  
"Because **what**?!" Kenny asked, trying to match Kyle's volume.  
"...Because I love you." Kyle finally said with a sigh.

Kenny was taken aback by Kyle's confession. He had never heard those words from anyone; not even his many girlfriends. He had never said them to anyone either. He had never felt anything even close to love for anyone. Until now.  
Kenny locked Kyle's bedroom door and approached him. He raised his hand and placed it on Kyle's cheek. Then, in one swift movement, he pulled Kyle closer with his other hand, while simultaneously pressing his lips against Kyle's. The boys enjoyed their kiss for just a few seconds before Kenny broke it off, just like before. Kyle smiled at Kenny, surprised by the blond boy's reaction to his confession of his feelings. Before Kyle could say something, Kenny pulled him closer for a second kiss, then a third and a fourth, all while gently pushing Kyle toward his bed. Once the boys reached Kyle's bed, they lied down next to each other and kissed one last time, before closing their eyes.

* * *

Kenny waited until Kyle fell asleep. Once he was sure Kyle had fallen asleep, he slowly rose from the bed, so as not to wake him up, and simply stared at Kyle, enjoying the sight.

"_You look so pretty when you're asleep._" Kenny thought. "_And you have the cutest snoring I've ever heard._"

Kenny put on his Mysterion outfit. He looked at his sleeping lover and gently kissed him on the forehead.

"Sleep well, Kyle. I'm sorry I have to do this. There's just no other way."

Kenny exited Kyle's bedroom through his window, so as not to be seen or heard by Kyle's family.

* * *

Near the abandoned building where Kenny found the Cthulhu cult's headquarters, the blond boy found several armed guards around the entrance, wearing the usual hood and cape. He sneaked past them into the main building. Once there, he found a secret entrance to the basement Cartman had had built under the building.

"_I wonder why they need guards..._" Kenny thought. "_They must be up to something big. Better check it out._"

Kenny walked for several minutes with no heading whatsoever, until he heard an announcement.

"Attention all personnel!" said the announcer. "The meeting is about to start. All personnel head into the main room for debriefing."

"_That sounds important. I should attend this meeting._"

* * *

Kenny managed to steal an outfit from one of the cult members, after knocking him out and locking him in a closet, and infiltrated the meeting. Several minutes afterward, the apparent leader of the cult – Cartman – headed inside and sat at the head of the table. Cartman cleared his throat, straightened his back and started the meeting.

"Today is a great day. We've finally managed to find R'lyeh, where the great Old Ones await us."

The large room roared in cheers for several seconds, until Cartman raised his hand, signaling for them to stop.

"_This is really bad..._" Kenny thought

"As you all know, we've been targeted by a mysterious caped vigilante, calling himself 'Mysterion'. However, as you probably don't know, this vigilante is called Kenny McCormick, and I know where he lives."

The cult members cheered once again, until Cartman raised his hand a second time.

"When you find him, be sure to capture him **alive**. Do **not** harm him. For Cthulhu!"  
"For Cthulhu!" yelled the cult members.

Just as they were about to leave, the cult member Kenny had locked in the closet barged in.

"He's here! I saw Mysterion! He took my cloak!"

Upon hearing this, Kenny tried to subtly exit the room, but there was no time. Almost immediately, Cartman yelled a couple of orders to his cult members.

"Seal the exits!" Cartman yelled. "Sound the alarm!"

An alarm was raised all throughout the building, and the cult members scattered, trying to find Kenny.

"_Great!_" Kenny thought. "_I can just sneak away while they're busy looking for me._"

However, Kenny was wrong. One glance at Kenny's bright blue eyes, and Cartman recognized him. Within seconds, he was swarmed with cult members, and, finally, knocked out cold.

* * *

The following morning, Kyle woke up to find himself alone in his bed, with his bedroom door still locked.

"_Thank God... Nobody walked in and found us together._"

Kyle got up and searched his room for Kenny.

"_Kenny... Where did you go?_"

Kyle's eyes were drawn to a small note attached to his computer screen with duct tape.

"_A note? Kenny must've left it here!_"

Kyle picked up the note and started reading it, with his heart pounding in his chest from the excitement.

"Kyle, I don't know of any other way to say this, so I'll just say it: I love you. More than you know and I thought possible. I have loved you since the day we met. I only wish there was a way we could be together. If I don't come back, I want you to have something that's very important to me. I've hidden it under your bed. Please keep it safe."

With each word he read, tears formed in his eyes, until, finally, they started rolling down his cheeks and onto the floor. Kyle checked under his bed, as the note said, and found Kenny's bright orange parka, with a note attached, simply saying "I'm sorry".

"_Kenny's parka..._"

* * *

Kenny woke up several hours later with someone splashing water on his face.

"_Ow... My head..._" Kenny thought.

Kenny blinked several times, with his vision blurry, and tried to move his hands over his throbbing head, to alleviate his headache, but no such luck. He was tied to a chair, with no possibility of escape.

"Hello, Kenny." Cartman said. "Welcome to my secret base."  
"What are you up to, Eric?"  
"Isn't it obvious? The Old Ones! They are the true gods of our universe! And I intend to revive them."  
"How? Cthulhu was defeated by Bradley, and all the Old Ones are sealed up in R'lyeh!"  
"But they can be revived. Even Bradley won't be able to stop all the Old Ones. And if I revive them, they will reward me with unlimited power."  
"You're insane. The Old Ones don't want to give you power, you moron!"  
"Shut up! You have no idea what the Old Ones are truly capable of."  
"I know them plenty well."  
"Why? Because you're all immortal? I've got news for you, Kenny: you're not immortal. At least not really. You'll die of old age, eventually. The Old Ones? Even in death, they still live. That's why Bradley couldn't fully defeat Cthulhu, and neither will you!"

Cartman punched Kenny across the face hard enough to knock down his chair, but the blond boy simply put on his best smile, in order to deny Cartman the pleasure of hurting him.

"Get him out of here!" Cartman yelled.  
"Yes sir!" replied one of the cult members.

* * *

Kenny was dragged away by two cult members, always maintaining the smile on his face, to piss off Cartman. However, once he reached his cell and was untied, his smile vanished.

"_Boy am I screwed. How am I gonna get out of this one?_" Kenny thought as he reached for his face. "_Damn, Cartman can sure punch hard. It fucking hurts!_"

Kenny looked around for a way to escape and to gauge his situation. He was being held in a cell that faced a hallway. Next to and opposite Kenny's cell there were even more cells that seemed to go on forever.

"_Fuck! If only I had a gun, I could kill myself and escape. I'd even settle for a knife, although it'd hurt like hell._"

* * *

Kenny sat in his cell for what seemed like hours, until he saw a bright light coming from the hallway. The light got brighter and brighter, to the point that Kenny had to protect his body from it. Once it finally vanished, Kyle appeared.

"Kyle? How did you find me?"  
"Kenny... Don't do it. Don't kill Cartman."  
"Kyle, you've gotta help me. I can't escape. If I don't stop him, Cartman is going to revive the Old Ones."

Kyle went through the cell's door, and his hand started glowing. He stretched his hand toward Kenny and dropped a small key on his lap.

"What's this?"  
"It's the key."

Kyle began to flicker and vanished, leaving Kenny to wonder if he had hallucinated the whole thing. He looked at his lap and picked the key up. As he held it in his hand, he became certain that everything he had seen was real.

"_I wonder..._"

Kenny tried the key on the jail door and, much to his surprise, it worked. He quickly exited the cell and tried to figure out where Cartman was.

"_Where is everyone? For that matter, where am **I**?_"

Kenny walked aimlessly for several minutes until he saw a cult member. Rather than knock him out and disguise himself, Kenny decided to follow him.

* * *

The cult member went around various rooms, clearly looking for something. Kenny followed him every step of the way as quietly as he could, always hiding just around the corner. Once the cult member arrived at a large room, possibly the largest in the compound, he finally found what he had been looking for – Cartman.

"Sir! We're ready to move in on your command."  
"Good. Go meet the others. I'll be here for a little while longer."  
"Yes sir."

Kenny hid in a room parallel to the one Cartman was in and waited for the cult member to leave. While he waited, Kenny inspected the room. It was similar to the one he had hid in when he found out Cartman was the cult's leader, but instead of having cleaning supplies, it had an unusually large amount of weaponry. Kenny picked up a nearby pistol, thinking that its small size would come in handy.  
Once the cult member passed by him, presumably headed for the exit, Kenny decided to spy on Cartman for some time, rather than simply busting in and knocking him out.

"_Come on, Cartman. Show me who you're working with. There's no way in hell a moron like you could put all this together._"

Cartman breathed in and out calmly, and a green mist appeared from the other side of the room. The mist formed a pair of red glowing eyes and a large mouth, and spoke to Cartman in an incomprehensible language. Cartman replied in the same language, making Kenny curious as to what they were saying. Once the conversation was over and the green mist disappeared, Kenny barged in. Cartman looked at him from head to toe. Kenny was bleeding from his forehead, his left arm, and was barely able to stand. Cartman smirked at the sight of Kenny, utterly convinced he couldn't stand in his way any more.

"Kenny! I see you're still as beat up as ever. Did you enjoy our little cell? I hope you didn't starve too much. Wouldn't want you to die just as we're about to find R'lyeh."  
"You found it?"  
"We sure did. Or, to be more precise, we found where it's going to be. You see, it's not as easy to find as you'd think. It moves around underwater from time to time. My followers-"  
"**Your** followers? What happened to Cthulhu?"  
"He's just a tool, like all **my** followers. When I have him under my control, I'll rule not just this planet, but the entire universe."  
"You're insane."  
"...Maybe so, but that doesn't mean I'm wrong."

Kenny began to feel lightheaded and grabbed on to the door to keep himself from falling.

"Not feeling so well, are we, Kenny?"  
"I-I'm fine."  
"Right... Well, now that you've heard my plan, I have to kill you."

"_As if you could._" Kenny thought.

Cartman aimed his gun at Kenny, but didn't pull the trigger.

"Kenny, if only I **could** kill you. I know the truth. 'That is not dead which can eternal lie, and with strange aeons even death may die'."  
"I've heard that before, but what does it mean?"  
"Only an immortal can kill another immortal permanently. In other words, I can't kill you, Kenny... but Cthulhu can. And once he's risen again, he'll want to. Believe me."  
"You know... I discovered a reason to keep on living once all of this is done. It was something I never thought I'd have... Love."  
"What does that have to do with anything?"  
"It's something you'll **never** have. It's something you **can't** have."  
"So? I'll have unlimited power, you moron! And that beats love any day of the week."  
"Because you can't feel it, you'll never know what it's like."

Cartman struck Kenny with the hardest punch he could throw, but the blond boy didn't even flinch.

"You don't know what you're missing out on."

Cartman struck Kenny again, with the same result.

"You'll never know what you're missing out on."

Kenny hit Cartman back, knocking the wind out of him.

"And that's why I'll win."

Kenny ignored his throbbing headache and hit Cartman as hard and fast as he could, using both his arms and legs, until Cartman was lying down on the ground, bleeding from his mouth and nose. Kenny felt dizzy again, but he ignored it and simply raised his gun and aimed it at Cartman's shoulder. He wanted to pull the trigger and hurt Cartman some more, but Kyle's words echoed in his mind. At that point, Kenny simply lowered his gun, but Cartman wasn't ready to end it just yet.

"You're going to have to kill me, Kenny, because I'll never stop."  
"Don't say that. I believe there's still a chance we can-"  
"**No**! Cthulhu is all that matters to me now! ...Kill me. Do it. Do it!"

Kenny looked at the gun he was holding, then at Cartman. He aimed the gun at Cartman with his good arm, thoroughly convinced that the fat boy was truthful in his claim that he would never stop. Tears started rolling down his cheeks as he realized what the only course of action was: Cartman had to die.

"...God forgive me."

* * *

I hope you liked that story. As I said before, it's just the first of three, so keep an eye out for the sequels.  
You're probably wondering what the phrase the Cthulhu worshipers yelled in the second chapter meant. I got it straight from Lovecraft's work. It means "In his house at R'lyeh dead Cthulhu waits dreaming".  
As for Kenny's hallucination of Kyle, that will be explained in the third story.


End file.
